kranyiksusan

I had the pleasure of seeing "Actor For Hire" at the Cucalorus 21 film festival. I found it to be hilarious, yet it still had enough pathos to keep me riveted. The film hits upon what actors go through daily trying to get a part in ANYTHING. The main character Jesse is betrayed by his girlfriend and his roommate, whom have been hooking up behind Jesse's back.During the process of having to find a new place to live, with no money,he meets a method actor who, along with three other guys, end up becoming his friends. Marcus Mizelle's concept of a bald actor, who finally succumbs to buying a wig, is a fresh perspective. The wig became another character in the film, which is where some of the funniest moments came from. Although the film somewhat satirizes the film industry, it does so in a way that isn't scathing or revengeful. The film reveals the fact that even non-actors are acting in their daily lives as well. The film was shot with a crew of three people, which boggles my mind. I can barely keep a cell phone camera steady, let alone a hand-held camera such as the one Mizelle used. There is a black and white scene that is just brilliant as well. I predict that this film is going to get a ton of distribution deals and I know that audiences are going to love it.

I had the misfortune of viewing "Red Luck" in a shorts block at Cucalorus 21. I believe the point of this film is to see how long audience members will stay in the theater before gouging their own eyes out, the latter being less painful than continuing watching this film. If a sadist, a masochist, and an art school dropout copulated, the baby would be this film. The dizzy, out of focus camera work ad nauseum let me know that the director and director of photography ran out of ideas on how to make their audience acquire vertigo.I would have rather seen this film done with a plot structure because the disconnected elements, as well as the music, could have used some connectivity.Honestly, let there be no "Red Luck Two".